Hey all- thoughts on custom saddlery dressage saddle for a back sore horse?
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You need to let the back recover because even a saddle that fits will be uncomfortable
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Different saddles brands have different tree shapes, especially back to front curve and side to side drop. If the Custom brand is a good natural fit for your horse it will fit. If not it won’t
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Custom Saddlery is just one of many semi custom made to order high end brands out there. My impression is they tend to have deeper seats and rolls than some other brands which might or might not be the ride you want. Note that if it’s secondhand it has been made to order for some other specific horse and rider pair.
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Why is the back sore? If it is kissing spines, a cracked rib, ulcers, or a pulled muscle no saddle will help.
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Awesome questions. Current saddle is not Custom Saddlery. It’s a non- custom brand. Underlying issues addressed now looking for a more suitable saddle.
Get an independent saddle fitter to take tracings of horses back to help you shop. Some brands will never fit your horse. Best to find that out early in the process. Your fitter can tweak the wool flocking but the tree needs to be a good match to your horse.
Any saddle that fits your horse well will do the job.
If you are buying new via a rep, be warned that many overpromise on fit and try to sell saddles where the tree doesn’t really fit the horse. Many horse owners have no clue about saddle fit and think if they drop $5k everything has to be good. Nope.
Don’t get caught up in brands until you have a way of evaluating the shape of your particular horse.
The semi custom made to order high end saddles are all pretty good, you just have to find the brand that fits your horse and the seat configuration that fits you. Custom, Stubben, Passier, County, Black Country, Schleese, are some very good brands with wool flocked jumping and dressage saddles that you can order semi custom or buy second hand.
Voltaire, CWD and Amerigo are the current fashionable foam padded jumping saddles, but they also do dressage saddles as well.
Get the saddle that fits. Impossible to say if Custom will be that saddle. If it fits it fits.
A non custom brand can also fit and if it’s flocked can also be tweaked and reflocked.
There’s no magic to any one brand, Custom or otherwise. They are all comparable.
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We had a mare come in with the Custom Saddlery that had been made for her. It DID NOT FIT even to my amateur eyes. Had to get her something else.
It’s not the brand, it’s whether or not the tree/panels/ seat/flap fit the horse and fit you.
If buying new, the rep will make or break you - some are knowledgeable and awesome. Some will do anything to make a sale and also don’t know the first thing about fitting.
Also: everything Scribbler said, seriously.
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Certain brands tend to fit certain breeds/shapes better than others. Custom tends to cater to WB types it seems. Personally I’m a fan of Serge panels, which are felted wool instead of leather - they seem to mold to the horse’s back on their own. Black Country, Patrick and Lovatt & ricketts are a few brands I know of offering Serge panels.
I just wanted to point out that Amerigo saddles are flocked, not foam. They can definitely be adjusted, both the tree (up or down a size via press) and the flocking.
Ok my mistake, thanks!
I wouldn’t want anyone turned off from looking at them because I love them 
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If the horse is still backsore after the underlying causes have been diagnosed, then there may still be more issues you want to pursue. You might want to do 4 to 6 weeks of rehab type ground work to get the horse to use its back properly. Many times when a horse has had significant backsorenss, the memory of that pain keeps them from really using their backs properly, even if the cause of the soreness has been successfully addressed.
But, assuming you’re already doing that, what others have said is right: the best saddle will be the one that fits your horse’s individual shape. Having a good saddle-fitter who is not affiliated with a particular brand can help you with that by taking wither tracings and making some suggestions about brands and models that might work.
A bunch of randos on the internet you haven’t seen your horse, as well-meaning as we all are, can’t really say whether a specific brand will fit your horse.
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All of this is super helpful! Thank you! That is the struggle there is not a truly independent saddle fitter in my area so I am trying to wade through what brands to at least consider then try to find a fitter that will be reasonable and consider all options.
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Ann Forest at Equestrian Imports is very good at long distance fitting and suggesting saddles.
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Where (roughly) are you, nwjumper? I took from the nw that you are in the northwest somewhere, no? I know a great independent saddle fitter in western WA if that helps.
Pelham saddlery in Vermont also will do long distance saddle fitting and can make suggestions. They do have some new saddle brands that the represent (Frank Baines for example), but they also carry a variety of used saddles in a lot of brands. They also have a description of how to do your own wither tracings:
https://www.pelhamsaddlery.net/fitting.html
Good luck!
Also remember that a saddle that DOESN’T fit at all, may make the horse appear better in the short term if it pinches/gaps in different places than the places the horse is already sore.
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Not sure your story, but Mesotherapy was a game changer for my horse with KS.
Pelham Saddlery is in New Hampshire. Doesn’t have much to do with your suggestion but as a New England horse person I have to butt in. 
Seconding the getting a fitter out to recommend something and giving a little time off if you haven’t already. If you really can’t find anyone, CoTH’ers can be really good at recommendations if you take good pictures of your horse.
For sensitive horses or horses that have had re-training because of pain or poor riding, don’t underestimate how much the saddle fitting you will affect your riding. Where your saddle places your center of gravity and your leg greatly affects your balance and where you sit on the horse. Panels help to distribute weight but your horse is much more sensitive to your balance than that.
yes, sorry about the New Hampshire/Vermont mix-up. I realized my error, but after someone else pointed out that the OP was possibly in the northwest, I thought it probably wouldn’t matter much to her!
But, I didn’t mean to ruffle any feathers! 
I’m just about to buy a Peter Horobin saddle for my new horse. I had a saddle fitter come out yesterday, and was shocked at how poorly my saddles actually fit. I have three lovely saddles- two Superior saddles and a Custom Advantage, all top notch saddles that are super comfortable to ride in and that I have used on other horses, and none of them came close enough to be worth restuffing and tweaking.
I’m going with the Peter Horobin because 1) the horse is young and not yet fully muscled or developed, so changes are expected, and 2) The saddle is fully adjustable and can be changed to fit other horses down the line. Peter Horobin Saddlery StrideFree Saddles - Peter Horobin Saddlery
I’m changing my screen name to “Rando.”
Agree with others who say to get his back feeling better. It doesn’t have to be work work. A 45-minute hand walk at a good clip stepping over ground poles here and there works wonders.
